Apparatus for coiling metal bands

ABSTRACT

D R A W I N G AT LEAST ONE BAND-RECEIVING REEL IS ROTATABLY MOUNTED ON A VERTICAL AXIS AT EACH SIDE OF A FRAMEWORK HAVING FRONT AN REAR ENDS. BETWEEN THE OPPOSED REELS THERE ARE VERTICALLY RECIPROCATING MEANS FOR SPOOLING METAL BANDS ON THE REELS, WHICH PULL THE BANDS FORWARD FROM A COMMON SOURCE OF SUPPLY. THE SPOOLING MEANS ARE OPERATED BY A HYDRAULIC SYSTEM THAT IS SO CONSTRUCTED AND CONTROLLED THAT IT LOWERS THE SPOOLING MEANS AT THE SAME SPEED AS THEY ARE RAISED, WHEREBY THE BANDS ARE WOUND ON THE REELS VERY EVENLY.

United States Patent Inventor Appl. No. Filed Patented Assignee APPARATUS FOR COILING METAL BANDS 16 Claims, 12 Drawing Figs.

US. Cl 242/80, 242/25, 242/78.] Int. Cl B214: 47/02 Field of Search 242/80, 25, 78, 78.1

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,177,373 l0/l939 Newton et al 242/25 2,7l7,l25 9/1955 Rayburn 242/25 3,098,621 7/1963 Nelson et al. 242/80X Primary ExaminerGeorge F. Mautz Attorney-Brown, Murray, Flick and Peckham ABSTRACT: At least one band-receiving reel is rotatably mounted on a vertical axis at each side of a framework having front and rear ends. Between the opposed reels there are vertically reciprocating means for spooling metal bands on the reels, which pull the bands forward from a common source of su ply. The spooling means are operated by a hydraulic system that is so constructed and controlled that it lowers the spooling means at the same speed as they are raised, whereby the bands are wound on the reels very evenly.

PATENTEU JUN28 \sn SHEET U UF 7 IN VENTOR. I MARI/IN M. T/QAOL ER A T TORNE V5 Ill PATENTEUJUNZBMI 3,587,993

SHEET 5 OF 7 INVENTOR.

MARI/0V M. TRADLER PAIENIED 3581.993

SHEET 8 OF 7 INVENTOR. MAew/v M. TRADLER APPARATUS FOR COILING METAL BANDS Metal bands can be formed by slitting a continuously moving wider strip lengthwise into the desired number of bands. Heretofore, it has been the practice to wind or coil each band on a separate reel that rotates on a horizontal axis. The reels are generally arranged in two rows, with the bands moving forward between the rows. The two outside bands are coiled on the first two reels, the next two bands on the next two reels and so on until all the bands and reels are accounted for. This requires the reels at the rear end of the rows to be spaced apart much farther than those at the front end so that those in the back will not interfere with strips extending forward to the front reels. Consequently, a considerable amount of floor space is required. When the bands are quite narrow, it is desirable to spool them onto the reels, by which is meant that the bands are wound back and forth on the reels like thread on a spool. Heretofore, it has been difficult to spool evenly, which presents problems. If the convolutions of a band overlap one another in each helix on a reel, the coiling will be very poor and irregular. On the other hand, even if they do not overlap, if the convolutions are not spaced apart evenly but as closely together as possible, space on the reel will be wasted and the appearance ofthe coil will not be good.

It is among the objects of this invention to provide ap paratus which spools narrow metal bands on reels mounted in parallel rows on vertical axes, which spaces the convolutions in each helix uniformly and a very short distance apart, and which spools the bands onto the reels by hydraulically operated means.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a plan view of the apparatus;

FIG. 2 is a side view;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary view of half of the apparatus looking outwardly along its center;

FIG. 4 is a vertical section taken on line lV-IV of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary elevation taken on the line V-V of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary view of the front end of the apparatus taken on the line VIVI of FIGQS;

FIG. 7 is a vertical section taken on the line VII-VII of FIG. 5;

FIG. 8 is a vertical section taken on the line VIII-VIII of FIG. 6;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary side view of the front end of the apparatus;

FIG. 10 is an end view of the same side of the apparatus;

FIG. 11 is a plan view of the front of the apparatus at the same side; and

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating the hydraulic circuit.

Referring to the drawings, a framework includes two parallel I-beams l and 2, each of which is supported by the inner ends of outwardly extending base beams 3. The outer ends of the base beams are connected to the I-beams by inclined braces 4. The two I-beams are connected at longitudinally spaced intervals by cross braces 5. Extending outwardly from the top of each I-beam are top beams 6, the outer ends of which are connected by channels 7 extending lengthwise of the frame.

The frame also includes a series of vertical rectangular plates 9 welded to the outer side of each I-beam. Mounted on the outer side of each plate is a vertical post 10, from which a pair of vertically spaced bearings 11 project. A vertical shaft 12 is rotatably mounted in each pair of bearings. The upper end of the shaft supports a reel consisting of circular lower flange l3 and an expandable and collapsible circular core or body 14. Below each reel a sprocket 15 is mounted on the supporting shaft and is driven by a chain 16 from a sprocket 17 at the upper end of a hydraulic driving unit 18 also mounted on plate 9. Preferably, the reels in the two parallel rows are opposite one another, although they do not have to be.

Secured to the inner side of each I-beam is a narrow vertical plate 20 that projects above the beam a short distance. Projecting inwardly from each of these plates is a pair of vertically spaced bearings 21, through which a vertical guide rod 22 extends for vertical movement. The upper ends of these rods support a long support, preferably in the form of a hollow rail 23 extending from the rear end of the frame nearly to its front end. Mounted on vertical axes on each of these parallel rails is a plurality of rollers 24, corresponding in number to the adjacent reels. The rearmost roller at the left-hand end of the machine in FIG. 1 is behind a rear reel and the rest of the rollers are in corresponding positions relative to the rest of the reels. Each of the rollers is provided with an annular groove for receiving a metal band 25 that is being wound on a reel. The groove'is formed between a flange at the bottom of the roller and a collar 26 mounted on the roller above the flange. The collar can be adjusted up and down the roller to vary the width of the groove for bands of different widths.

Extending forward from each roller is an arm 27 as shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 5, the rear end of which is pivotally connected to the underlying rail 23 on a vertical axis. For best results, the rear end of the arm is in the form of a yoke that straddles the adjacent roller and is pivotally mounted on the same axis. The front end of each arm carries a small roller 28 on a vertical axis beside the center of the adjacent reel. This roller likewise is provided with an annular groove, the bottom of which is formed by a flange at the same level as the bottom flange on the roller 24 behind it. The top of the groove is formed by a vertically adjustable collar 29 as shown in FIG. 5. A short distance behind the front roller there is a plain intermediate roller 30 parallel to it. The position of this third roller is such that a band extending from the rear roller across the front roller to the reel will also engage the intermediate roller without bending the band appreciably. Thus, the intermediate roller holds the front roller against the band during the entire time that the band is being wound on the reel. It is preferred that the band engage the side of the front roller adjacent the reel as shown in FIG. 3, in which case the intermediate roller will engage the opposite side of the band. This front roller keeps the band from wandering up and down as it is wound on the reel.

Each metal band is not simply wound on a reel, with all of the convolutions in the same horizontal plane, but is spooled on the reel so that the band is wrapped progressively from bottom to top on the reel in a helix and then from top to bottom. In order to spool the bands on the reels, the rails 23 are raised and lowered continuously. In their lower position they will cause the lowest convolutions of the bands to be spaced a short distance above the reel flanges so that tongs can be inserted between those flanges and the bottoms of the finished coils in order to lift the coils from the reels after their cores have been collapsed. The rails and the rollers carried by them are raised and lowered by hydraulic cylinders containing double acting pistons 33 (FIG. 12). For best results, as shown in FIGS. 5, 7 and 12, the cylinders 31 are vertical and are rigidly mounted on vertical supports 32 secured to the inner sides of the I-beams.

The pistons 33 support the rails 23 above them. The upper ends of the upper piston rods 34 are separated from the rails by intervening toothed racks 35. As the racks are moved up and down by the pistons, they rotate gears 36 rigidly mounted on the ends of horizontal shafts 37 extending lengthwise of the frame. The shafts are mounted in bearings 38 supported by brackets 39 projecting from the l-beams. The two racks for each rail are therefore tied together by the gears and one shaft so that both ends of the rail will always rise and fall together, even if one piston does not move exactly in unison with the other. As the pistons move the rails up and down, the metal bands are carried up and down by the rollers they engage and thereby the bands are spooled or wrapped helically around the reels.

A very important feature of this invention is that the flow of hydraulic fluid to and from the cylinders is controlled in such a manner that pistons 33 are raised and lowered continuously at a uniform rate so that the band convolutions in each helix will always be the same distance apart on a reel. For this purpose,

as shown in FlGS. 9, 10, 11 and 12, hydraulic fluid is pumped by a supercharger'M through a conduit 42 and a four-way solenoid valve 43 alternately to conduits 44 and 45 leading to the opposite ends of the cylinders. As the valve is shifted back and forth between its two positions, it connects the pressure fluid first with the top and then with the bottom of each cylinder and simultaneously drains the other end of the cylinder, such as by connecting it with a conduit 47 leading to the tank 48 which supplies the supercharger with fluid. Since the cylinders are vertical, the space between each piston and the opposite ends of its cylinder will always be full of fluid, so the slightest movement of fluid into either end of the cylinder will move the piston.

In order to control the rate of flow to the cylinders, conduit 42 between the supercharger and the valve contains a metering pump 49 that is driven by a chain and sprocket drive 50 from the front end reel shaft 12. Consequently, the speed with which the rails are raised and lowered will depend upon the r.p.m. of the reels, as it should. The faster the reels turn, the faster the rails will reciprocate. The metering pump is adjustable so that the rails can be moved up and down faster or slower, which will determine the spacing between the convolutions of the bands on the reels. The faster the rails reciprocate, the farther apart the convolutions will be spaced.

During the down stroke of the rails, their weight and the weight of the parts that they carry add to the fluid pressure moving the pistons downwardly and therefore, if allowed to happen, would tend to force the fluid out of the lower ends of the cylinders faster than it is forced out of the upper ends during the upstroke. This would make the spooling of the bands on the reels uneven. To prevent this, a counterbalance valve 52 is placed in conduit 45 between the lower ends of the cylinders and the four-way valve. This counterbalance is adjusted to restrict the flow of fluid from the lower ends of the cylinders back to the tank and it thereby retards the flow so that the pistons will move downwardly at the same speed as they are moved upwardly. During the upstroke the pressure fluid bypasses the counterbalance through a check valve 53. The resulting uniform movements of pistons 33 up and down assure exceptionally uniform coiling of the bands on the reels.

The four-way valve for each side of the frame is operated by its own limit switch that is controlled by the vertical movements of the rail at that side. Thus, each switch 55 may be mounted on a post 56 at the rear end of the frame, and its trip lever 57 (FIG. 6) can be actuated by cams projecting toward it from a vertical bar 58 carried by the adjacent rail. The upper cam 59 will trip the switch just as the rail reaches its lower limit, which will reverse the four-way valve and cause the pistons to start moving the rail upwardly again. As the rail approaches its upper limit, the lower cam 60 trips the switch, which again reverses the valve and starts the rail down. The switch can be adjusted up and down its post to the best position.

The reels pull the metal bands forward through a separator 62 behind the frame, as shown in FIGS, 1 and 2. The bands themselves are formed farther back in conventional manner by a slitter (not shown) that cuts a forwardly travelling wider strip lengthwise into a number of narrow ones. Between the slitter and the separator the bands pass in a horizontal plane between two horizontal resilient pinch rolls 63 and 64 that offer no resistance to the bands while they are being coiled. Tension on the bands is maintained by the resistance created by the slitter. Between the rolls and the separator the bands are twisted 90 so that they pass through the separator on edge. The upper roll is provided with an air-operated drag brake 65 controlled by solenoid valves 66. The lower pinch roll is supported by air cylinders 67, by which it can be pressed up against the upper roll when a solenoid valve 68 connected with those cylinders is actuated. When the coiling of a set of bands is about completed or the bands are about used up, the bottom roll 64 is raised by cylinders 67 to pinch the bands against the upper pinch roll. At the same time, one of the solenoid valves 66 is operated to cause the brake to exert some drag on the upper roll as the reels are being slowed down. Then simultaneously with stopping of the reels, the other solenoid valve 66 is operated to increase the air pressure on the brake and stop the upper roll. This maintains the bands taut between the pinch rolls and the reels and also holds the bands while the leading end of a new coil of wide strip is being welded to the trailing end of the strip that was being slit. While held taut by the pinch rolls after coiling is completed, each band is cut and the trailing end is fastened to the coil so that the coil will not unwind. The collapsible cores of the reels then are released and the coils lifted from them.

When the reels werestopped, brakes were applied to the gear shafts so that the weight of the coils, rails, rollers, etc. would not cause the rails to settle downwardly if they were in a raised position at the time. Preferably, the brakes 70 (FIG. 4) are air brakes mounted on brackets 71 attached to the beams. The brakes engage brake drums 72 rigidly mounted on the shafts.

lclaim:

1. Apparatus for coiling metal bands, comprising a framework having front and rear ends, a reel at each side of the framework rotatable on a vertical axis, means for driving the reels to pull bands forward between the reels from a source of supply, a pair of vertically movable laterally spaced supports between said reels, a roller mounted on a vertical axis on each of said supports behind the adjacent reel and provided with an annular groove for receiving a band, an arm extending forward from each roller, means pivotally connecting the rear ends of the arms to said supports on vertical axes, a roller with a vertical axis carried by the front end of each arm beside the adjacent reel and provided with an annular groove for receiving a band and engaging one side of it, means carried by the front portion of each arm beside the front roller thereon for engaging the opposite side of the adjoining band, and means for raising and lowering said supports continuously at a uniform rate to spool the bands on the reels.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, in which the pivotal axis of each arm is also the axis of the roller at its rear end.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1, in which said raising and lowering means include'hydraulic cylinders and double-acting pistons therein connected with said laterally spaced supports.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1, in which said laterally spaced supports are horizontal rails, the apparatus including vertical guides for the rails.

5. Apparatus according to claim .1, in which said laterally spaced supports are horizontal rails, and said raising and lowering means include a pair of vertical hydraulic cylinders below each rail and a double-acting piston in each cylinder supporting the overlying rail, said apparatus including a vertical rack bar connected to each rail adjacent each cylinder, gears meshing with the rack bars, and a shaft rigidly connecting the gears at each side of the apparatus.

6. Apparatus according to claim 1, including a plurality of reels at each side of said framework spaced longitudinally along it and arranged in two parallel rows.

7. Apparatus according to claim 1, including means behind said framework for clamping said bands when the reels are stopped, whereby to hold the bands taut between said clamping means and reels.

8. Apparatus according to claim 1, in which said raising and lowering means include vertical hydraulic cylinders and a double-acting piston in each cylinder supporting one of said supports, said apparatus including a source of hydraulic fluid under pressure, valve means for connecting either end of a cylinder with said source and simultaneously draining the other end, means between the lower end of each cylinder and said valve means retarding draining of fluid from that end, and means permitting the fluid to bypass said retarding means while the fluid is being delivered to the lower end of the cylinder.

9. Apparatus according to claim 8, including a metering pump for delivering said hydraulic fluid from said source to said valve means, and means driven by one of the reels for driving said pump.

10. Apparatus according to claim 1. in which each of said front rollers is positioned to be engaged by a band between it and the adjacent reel.

11. Apparatus according to claim 1, including pinch rolls behind said frame for engaging the bands, means for exerting drag on one of the rolls, and means for stopping rotation of one of the rolls when the reels are stopped, whereby to hold the bands taut between the rolls and the reels.

12. In apparatus for coiling a metal band on a reel rotating on a vertical axis, vertically reciprocable means for spooling a band on such a reel, a hydraulic cylinder below said means, a double-acting piston in the cylinder for moving said means up and down, pumping means for hydraulic fluid, conduits connected to the opposite ends of the cylinder, valve means for connecting the output of said pumping means with either of said conduits while connecting the other conduit with-drain, means in the conduit connected to drain during descent of said spooling means for retarding flow of fluid toward drain to counterbalance the spooling means, and means for bypassing said counterbalancing means while fluid is flowing toward the cylinder through said last-mentioned conduit.

13. In apparatus according to claim 12, means actuated by the vertical movements of said spooling means for shifting said valve means to connect the pumping means with first one of said conduits and then the other.

14. In apparatus according to claim 12, said pumping means including a hydraulic supercharger, and a manually adjustable metering pump between the supercharger and said valve means.

15. In apparatus according to claim 12, said pumping means including means for adjusting the flow to said valve means to change the speed of movement of said spooling means up and down.

16. In apparatus according to claim 15, said adjusting means being a metering pump driven by the reel. 

